EDITORIAL

Just over a year ago I moved to Vermont from Washington, D.C. with my partner and
our then 1 1/2 year old son. We left a community with a large lesbian and gay popula-
tion, numerous social and service organizations, several bookstores and a weekly news-

paper.

We choose Vermont partly because my partner grew up and had her roots in Burlington,
partly to return to New England and in large part to escape the congestion and craziness
of D.C. We were less sure how we were going to find a community here, though we
knew one existed.

Not long after arriving, I walked into the offices of Vermont C.A.R.E.S, looking for in-
formation on social groups for lesbian and gay parents. I was handed a copy of Out in
the Mountains and referred to the Resource Page and the Calendar section. It was while
reading that issue, that I saw the listing for OIT M sniffing and decided it would be a
good way to get to know some people. Little did I anticipate that just over a year laterl
would become the new editor of the paper.

OITM served as my introduction to the lesbian and gay community in Vermont, high-
lighting the importance of the paper beyond its function as a statewide reporter of news.
It is the most comprehensive resource guide to services of all types for the lesbian, gay,
and bisexual community and an affirmation of our existence and variety as a com-
munity. One of the more creative uses of the paper occured at Pride Day when at least
two people cut out the pink triangle drawing from the front cover of the June issue to
use as buttons.

Hugh Coyle, editor for the past year, is leaving for the wilds of Montana. Filling his
shoes is a large task, but with the support of a large and committed staff, I’m confident
the paper will continue to grow and improve as it has under Hugh’s guidance.

This is an exciting time to be talcing on the job of editor. As reported by Carrie Coy,
Vennont’s Gay Pride '91 was the biggest and best ever. The ACLU Biennial Confer-
ence, held in Burlington, featured a luncheon address by Tom Stoddard, President of
Lambda Legal Defense Fund. The hate-crimes law is being enforced and once again, as
reported by Ben Truman, we have an opportunity to enact a civil rights bill. I look for-
ward to working with the staff of the paper and the gay and lesbian community of Ver-
mont as we continue to grow, change, and become more visible.

Deborah Lashman V

Comnuedfrompagel OUTRIGHT Vermont After the rally

comedienne Liz Sampson and singer/
guitarist Lisa McCormick kept a mostly
women audience cool and amused for
several hours.

We’re Here

This year’s rally was a creation of new-
ly-forined Vermont Pride, led by per-
ennial organizer Ronnie Bancroft, and

316 Bufliflgmn W0m9“’S Cmmcila with Capping off the night, rollicking music.

some first-time help from the Boston
and New Hampshire Pride Committees.
A grateful Bancroft thanked New
Hampshire for supplying the walkie
talkies to help coordinate marchers and
camcorders to record the event.

The day stretched into a weekend with a
Friday bash in Contois Auditorium that
drew a hundred or so campy dancers
and netted $130 for its sponsors, the
Multi-Cultural Council of Vermont and

from Virginia and the Wolves coaxed
even the most steadfast wall-flowers onto
the floor at Memorial Auditorium.

In the end, the mood of the weekend
seemed a response to an open-ended dil-
ema posed by Vermont C.A.R.E.S. di-
rector Lauren Corbett. How can
C.A.R.E.S. volunteers, she wondered at
the podium, affirm life in their daily work
and still manage to acknowledge loss?
The spirit of Pride ‘91 seemed to honor
both. V